With SoftBank deal in hand and Clearwire buyout near, Sprint set to become 'spectrum powerhouse'

Sprint has also fought Dish over the buyout of Clearwire, recently raising its bid to $5 a share from $3.40 to outbid Dish's bid of $4.40 a share. The Clearwire shareholders will vote on that deal on July 8. The Clearwire board and minority shareholders support the $5 per share bid.

Sprint owns a majority stake in Clearwire, valued at about $14 billion, which means it would need $5 billion to $6 billion to buy Clearwire outright, Entner said.

SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son has said that Sprint will hold on to to its unlimited smartphone data plans. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Son also said that putting Sprint on par with AT&T and Verizon in spectrum holdings will "stimulate the whole industry in terms of both innovation, the prices, services, everything."